The “caravan” has arrived at our border. Now what?

Jazz ShawPosted at 9:21 am on April 30, 2018

We can’t say we didn’t have plenty of warning. The caravan of migrants who crossed Mexico, while vastly depleted in numbers, has arrived at the United States border. Originally numbering more than one thousand, many of them chose to either turn back or attempt to stay in Mexico after international attention was drawn to the migration. But despite the fact that early MSM reports shrugged it off and implied that they weren’t going to try to enter the United States, hundreds of them are now near the San Diego border crossing and presenting themselves as refugees seeking asylum. (Associated Press)

A group of Central Americans who journeyed in a caravan to the U.S. border resolved to turn themselves in and ask for asylum Sunday in a direct challenge to the Trump administration — only to have U.S. immigration officials announce that the San Diego crossing was already at capacity.

Nearly 200 migrants, many traveling with children, had decided to apply for protection at the nation’s busiest border crossing after many fled violence in their home countries, organizers said. The caravan got attention after President Donald Trump and members of his Cabinet called it a threat to the United States.

Shortly before the migrants were expected to arrive, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said San Diego’s San Ysidro crossing would not immediately be able to handle more asylum seekers. It can hold about 300 people at a time, and officials had been warning that it might fill up.

Put in the most charitable light, most of these migrants are actually attempting to do the right thing and follow the rules, at least for now. (We should specify “most of them” here because it’s unknown how many of them may have split off and already attempted to cross the border illegally.) Those choosing to apply for asylum are being entered into the system and their request will be considered. Some may be granted legal entry, and that’s fine.

But the complaints are coming in from illegal alien activists already, bemoaning the fact that there is a delay in processing such a huge number of new requests in a period of a few days. The local San Ysidro processing center is already at maximum capacity and it will take time for all of the new arrivals to have their requests investigated and dealt with. Another worrying aspect is the striking similarity in their stories as reported by immigration officials. It’s almost as if many of them have been coached by someone as to what they should say to maximize their chances for entry.

Meanwhile, the press is having a field day with this, taking every opportunity to use these stories as reasons to label the President as a monster who is looking to “discourage” legal immigration and cruelly separate children from their parents. Enter the Washington Post right on cue. (Emphasis added)

By now it’s clear that there are few red lines President Trump is unwilling to cross in his crusade to rid the United States of undocumented immigrants. For Mr. Trump, having washed his hands of the “dreamers” — young migrants, most in their 20s, raised and educated in the United States after being brought here as children — it’s hardly a moral leap to inflict lasting psychological damage on younger children by taking them from their parents if it will further his goal of combating illegal immigration.

Two things to consider here, though it’s becoming tiresome to have to repeat myself. First, the only reason the children – particularly the ones who are citizens by birthright of illegal aliens – are being separated from their parents is that their parents knowingly broke the law. Have you ever pondered assigning some of the blame for the separation to the parents? By putting your kids into a situation where you are regularly subject to the threat of discovery, detention and deportation it is actually you who are placing your children in danger, not America’s immigration officials.

Second, how else do you propose we deal with the situation? If the children are also non-citizens they can readily be deported with their parents. But until such time as the legal process is concluded (once again highlighting our need for more immigration judges) should the children be held in adult detention centers? Failing that it seems that your only other solution would be to simply release the parents so the families can stay together. Of course, then ICE has to go track them down all over again. Does that really sound productive to you?

In the end, most of these complaints like the ones coming from the WaPo editorial board boil down to one thing. They don’t want to come straight out and say it, but they don’t believe that immigration laws are valid or should be enforced. If they did they wouldn’t be publishing hyperbolic accusations such as these.